The Missing Piece
by B00tyQueen
Summary: Levi Ackerman thought he'd never see Luna again, let alone find her bleeding to death at the mouth of the staircase leading to the underground Stohess district. With Erwin giving him no other real option, he must turn Luna into a ruthless soldier and join her on to Squad Levi. However, Luna is not as nameless as he was first led to believe...
1. Chapter 1

" _Promise you won't leave me, Levi?" she giggled, taking hold of his hand. Her smiled shone through her tears on her face.  
"I promise." He smiled at her. Holding her hand, she took her back to their hide out. _  
"Captain Levi! She's hurt really badly. What are we to do?" came the voice of Mikasa Ackerman, but it didn't penetrate the thoughts of Captain Levi Ackerman. For the girl who had just emerged from the Underground city, bloody dirty, was someone he knew. Her long white blonde hair spilled out of her cloak. She was rolled onto her back, and there was a patch of blood slowly growing across her stomach. Levi snapped into action. Kneeling down, he tore open the top, using some lose fabric from it to put pressure on the wound.  
"Ackerman! Quickly, get Hanji! Ready a cart!" he calmly demanded. On the surface, his impenetrably stiff demeanour was the same, but underneath he could feel his heart hammering, his gut twisting. _"This is what you get for leaving her down there alone, idiot. This is your fault."  
_ He saw her eyes flutter. His grey, steely gaze met her green, and he found in her eyes a pleasant shock. And the same happiness he found the day he pulled her out of the gutter.  
"Le… Levi! You found me!" she smiled. A tear rolling down her cheek, mixing with the blood on her face.  
"Tell me, who did this?" Levi demanded.  
"It was… the man on the stairs. He attacked me. I paid my way to get up the stairs, he said I under paid him. I hadn't, and he attacked me. All I wanted to do… Was find you." It's been eight years…" she coughed, blood coming from her mouth.  
At that moment a horse and cart, with Hanji riding it pulled up. "Put her in the back, keep her neck supported on your knee Levi. And keep pressure on that damn wound."  
With help from Mikasa, Levi carefully placed her into the cart.  
"Stay with me."  
Her eyes where heavy lidded, and Levi could tell she was fighting to stay awake.  
"Levi… Why didn't you come back?" She whispered weakly. Levi's heart sunk. He couldn't tell her what had happened to Isabel and Farlan. He couldn't tell her that after seeing the sun for the first time ever, he couldn't bear to walk back down those steps, even while in uniform.  
"Just… Just stay with me, Luna."


	2. Chapter 2

Upon arriving at the old headquarters they recently cleaned out, they her, to which Eren and Jean ran out. "Mikasa, what happened? Who's that?" Eren panicked.

"She's been stabbed, Jaeger. She needs stitches." Levi said, his cold voice not even wavering.

"Help me get her onto the stretcher, Levi." Hanji exclaimed, propping it onto the floor. Because she was so light, Levi could pick her up bridal style with ease. Placing her onto the stretcher, Luna whimpered.

"Gotta say, this is some major pain I'm in here. You sure I'm going to live?" she smiled half-heartedly at Levi.

"You're with the best doctor in the Scouting Legion, you'll be back on your feet in no time. Now, I need you to put pressure on the wound while we take you upstairs for operating."

"Please... don't leave me again." She whispered. It broke his heart, even at a time like this, all she wanted was him close by. He nodded. While he and Eren picked up the stretcher, Hanji ran upstairs to clean down her laboratory. It had been a while she had done an internal wound fixture, it was not often that she was given a chance to operate like this, seeing as the battle field was outside of the walls and by the time they got back to headquarters they were dead or comatose.

Placing the stretcher on the table top, Hanji prepared a rag with chloroform on it. She placed it over Luna's mouth and nose. She stared blindly at Levi, terrified of what would happen next. He held her hand, and swooped over to whisper in her ear.

"I'll be here when you wake up." With that, her hand grew slack, and she was sleeping.

"Levi, I need you. Pull on some gloves. I need you to apply six drops of chloroform to the rag and apply to her face for thirty seconds every twenty minutes. Watch the clock. I need to cut her open to seal up the damages to her stomach, and clean the area. Then, we'll staple the wound shut. Ok? I need you to keep a check on her pulse too. I'll be as fast as possible." Levi nodded at his trusted friend. She pulled the equipment over to her, and started the procedure. Levi felt sick looking at the sharp blade cut through soft white skin. It made him think of when he found her.

There she was... On the ground, bleeding. He had picked her up and taken her to his small house. Farlan looked at him funny as he walked through the door. "What did you do, Levi?" he asked angrily. This girl was about five years their junior, in the region of fifteen years old.

"I did nothing. She looks like she's been beaten pretty badly. So I decided to help." He said, his face a blanket of calm. Her shoulder had become dislocated, and she had several deep lacerations on her arms and body. He cleaned the cuts and bandaged her head. When she had come around, he had asked her name. She was quiet, closing her eyes. "Where are you parents, brat?" he demanded in an emotionless voice. A silent tear slipped down her cheek. Then another, then a sniffle. More tears, then a bubble burst from her mouth. She flung her arms around him. She was sobbing relentlessly. Levi put his arms around her gingerly, not wanting to touch her as he didn't know how clean she was. "They... they're dead! A man killed them! They promised they'd be straight back!" she wailed. He patted her on the back. What could they do? Throw an innocent child into the street? Isabel had been just the same, crawled to their door without welcome. "Do you have any other relatives?" Farlan asked the girl. She shook her head, sobs wracking her small body.

"She has to stay here Farlan." Levi said. The blonde man nodded his head, and ruffled the small girl's hair.

That night, when Isabel had arrived, and started to question the girl who was now sleeping soundly, freshly washed and in an old night gown Isabel had outgrown, laying on Levi's leg on the beaten sofa they had in their front room. Farlan took her to the other room, and told her what had happened. Isabel nodded, understanding. Isabel and Farlan laid down in the small bed in the other room, and fell asleep, knowing the new girl they didn't even know the name of was safe with their leader.

Levi rolled out the battered futon on the floor, looking back at the girl, then at the small blanket he had. He could leave her on the couch, but she'd be cold. It was freezing this time of year, and she'd surely catch her death. He sighed, rolled his eyes, and then picked her up, placing her on the futon in front of him. He pulled the blanket over them both, laid his head down, and shut his eyes. All he could think of was the long blonde hair, tickling his nose currently. Then it struck him. Poking her gently, he whispered; "What's your name, brat?" he asked quietly, too tired to put on his emotionless voice.

"Hmmm... Luna. Yours?" she mumbled.

"Call me Levi."

"Levi... come back to realty! The wounds weren'textensive, nothing had been cut, just a flesh wound. So we can go ahead andstaple her and bandage her, then she'll come around soon after, probably whilewe're bandaging. Now, before she wakes up, fill me in. How do you know her?"she demanded, in a calm, yet surly voice. Levi was taken aback, Hanji, one of hisclosest friends, normally knew when he didn't want to discuss certain never really discussed the loss of Farlan and Isabel to her. Now he wouldhave to explain to Luna...

"Hanji please..." Levi begun.

"No Levi. I am your friend and I can take the cool exterior and the random outbursts of anger, but not this." She waved her hand to the patient on the table."A girl from the underground shows up, half dead, and you show more emotion inone look than you have in what... the seven years we've known each other. Whatwas she? You're girlfriend?" she demanded, concern marring her normally smoothface. Levi looked at the ground, hearing her take out the stapler. She startedstapling the wound shut, careful not to fray the edges of the wound and make iteven worse.

"No Hanji... nothing like that..." He stuttered.

"Levi I know you've had a horrible few years... I mean, Isabel and Farlan... didshe know them? Does she know they're..? You know..." she thought.

"Yes she knew them. We all lived together in that pokey, one bedroom apartmentabove the bakery."

"How did she not get caught with you three?" Hanji was finishing up the laststaple, and cleaning the wound. Not taking her eyes from the skin she wasworking miracles on.

Levi looked back... another memory.

"In the underground, old men would get drunk and pay a lot of money to sleepwith young girls like Luna. Luna, was a sickly child, which stunted her of this, she looked much younger than she really was. At sixteen, wepassed her off easily for an eleven year old. Everyone thought Farlan was herbrother, their story being they had no other way to get cash. What we did wasgive her tablets she'd slip into the man's drink, and while she was gettingready in the bathroom, he would be asleep within seconds. She'd then rob himand I'd come to get her through the window. The man would wake up and find hismoney gone, but he'd have no memory so he would come back to her several was doing this exact thing when we were taken by Erwin. Like Hell I'd lethim get his paws on Luna. She would have died, even the light would havedamaged her skin. So I told him it was just the three of us."

"Why? Wouldn't she have been just as defenceless down there as up here?" Hanjibegan bandaging the wound. Levi washed his hands. "At least if she was on thesurface, she would have-"

"Died. Just like Isabel and Farlan. All these years, I've prayed she was she had escaped that room that night, and had at least not had such a badlife, and that she'd find me one day. But not like this!" he waved his hand inher direction. She was still pale, and if it wasn't for the slight red flush onher cheeks, everyone else would have thought her to be a corpse. Hanji wassilent. She waved Levi over to help her get her to the recovery wing. She wasalone in it, as many of those injured on the battle field didn't make it her on a comfy, soft bed, Levi looked at Hanji.

"She's going to freak out over how comfy this bed is, you know. She's probablyslept on floors of thin futons all the time she's been down there." Levi shookhis head. "I'll stay with her until she wakes up." He sat on the chair next toher bed, taking her hand. "Make sure no one else asks questions, and no oneelse comes in here." When she left the room, he took hold of Luna's pale hand.


	3. Chapter 3

"Is there anyone else with you?" Erwin sneered down at him. Farlan and Isabel shook their heads, but they looked to Levi. Leave Luna alone or have her exposed to the horrors they all knew awaited them above ground.

"We have no one else." He said, a steely cold tone he had learned to train into his voice.

"Take them away, men." Erwin commanded. As they were dragged away from the alley way, Levi looked up to the pub they had planned to save Luna from in just mere moments. He could see the window, and he swore for a moment he saw a flash of pale hair in the window. She'd be waiting now. He put his head down, not wanting to feel the tightening in his chest anymore.

Suddenly he jolted up from his short sleep. "Levi?" He heard Luna murmur.

"Luna? Are you ok?" he whispered to her, suddenly wide awake.

"Did you stay with me?" she muttered, rolling her neck weakly to the side.

"I've not left your side Luna." He said. She placed a hand on her cheek. He hadn't been touched like this in years. He shut his eyes.

"Levi… What happened? Please tell me." She begged quietly. A tear escaped from her eye.

"Please don't cry Luna." He said, whipping the tear from her cheek. "Isabel, Farlan and I were captured by the Scouting Legion as we were coming to get you. Commander Erwin had been tracking us for months, and finally caught us. They demanded to know whether there was another one of us, but we told them it was just us three. You were too young to come above ground. We couldn't do that to you."

"Where are they?" she asked, sitting up with great effort. Levi helped by putting her arm under her shoulder and propping her up. She smiled at him, that cute smile he remembered. His face went white. Asking for Isabel and Farlan. He closed his eyes, remembering their bodies, and breathed out a rattling breath.

"Isabel and Farlan were killed in their first real expedition beyond the walls, fresh out of training. I left my group to try and kill Erwin under the cover of heavy rain. A titan tore them apart while I wasn't there. We retrieved the bodies. We can visit them, if you wish." He rattled off the emotionless speech he had rehearsed in his head many times, just in case he ever saw Luna again. The light drained from Luna's face, her smile slowly dropping into a look of shock. Her eyes lost their sparkle. She looked at her hands, now in her lap. They were pale and soft. Just then, they heard a voice. "I don't care Hanji! He fucking lied to me!"

"Oh shit!" Levi jumped up. Just then a handsome, tall blonde man burst through the door, along with Hanji. "Commander please!" she shouted. He strode towards the pair. He seized the shorter man by his front. "You little bastard! I ASKED YOU WHETHER THERE WAS ANYONE ELSE." He hollered in Levi's face. He head butted Levi in the nose, and a 'crack' echoed through the room. He had broken Levi's nose. Luna attempted to get out of the bed.

"No! Stop!" she tried to shout, it coming out as a whimper. She fell off the bed with a load 'whack'. She crawled her way round the bed towards the two. Erwin had his eyes on her, while his hands where still on the front collar of the shorter man. A trickle of blood dripped down Levi's nose.

Standing on wobbly legs, Luna drew to her full height of about five foot one. She glared at Erwin with a blazing hatred.

"Are you Commander Erwin?" she demanded, her voice suddenly dripping with anger. Erwin's expression suddenly softened at her. He always had a soft spot for beautiful women. Dropping Levi, he leaned down a little, smiling.

"Hello, yes I am Commander Erwin Smi-"and he was suddenly cut off but a sudden punch to the mouth, stumbling back. Then, Luna delivered a roundhouse kick to his jaw, which sent him sailing to the floor. He tried to get back up, but was met with her knee to the chin. Erwin lay there on the floor, dazed. Hanji grabbed Luna from behind. Hanji picked her up underneath the breast so not to disturb the wound. Luna kicked and punched. She had powerful legs. Levi took a hankie out of his pocket, and whipped his nose of blood. Hanji would have to fix it properly for him after this was done. How in Hell she hadnt busted a stitch, let alone be overtaken by the pain she was most probably in, they didn't know.

"Don't fucking touch him again! You piece of shit, I'll kill you!" Luna spat. Her recent wound had not deterred her. The words resonated inside both Erwin and Levi, the same words Levi had screamed at him when he had just killed the titan who killed Isabel and Farlan. Levi got up, and took her from Hanji. He held her close, her face smashed into his neck. She wrapped her arms around him. Erwin and Hanji were shocked. In the whole seven years they'd known him, he had not touched anyone unless absolutely necessary, and even then he had done so gingerly. Even when Petra had hugged him when she was alive, he held his arms at his sides and winced uncomfortably. But he held Luna like there had been no time lost between them. Erwin exited the room.

-later-

Walking down the corridor, he saw Levi half the corridor away from him, about to enter his office. This gave him an idea. Erwin knew Levi cared for this girl, more than he had ever cared for Petra even. He knew, by conceiling her in the Underground, Levi wanted to protect her from the Titans. He ran after Levi, catching him by the shoulder.

"Levi, where are you going?" Erwin demanded.

"I'm taking Luna to Isabel and Farlan's graves. She wants to say goodbye." He said stiffly. He was obviously still angry about Erwin hitting him, even though Levi felt he deserved it.

"Where is she now?" Erwin questioned. Levi stood strong.

"Getting clean, and putting some different clothes on. Why?"

"I must speak to you about her when you come back." With this, he turned and left Levi stunned. Levi was confused, shaking his head, he stalked to his office. Opening the door, he shut it behind him. He knew exactly what was coming. He went to his desk, pulling out a photo that Isabel had saved to have done of them while in the underground. It was a group photo, the day they had been in the market when the guy with a camera was there. He took their group photo, and Isabel had given it to Levi because she knew, secretly, he had wanted one. There Farlan and Isabel were, smiling wide, their eyes closed and their expressions happy. And in the middle, was Luna. She had been with them for about a year. She had that awkward smile she had always donned, and there was Levi. A whisper of a smile on his lips. He had his arm wrapped around Luna, like he usually did. They looked so young. You wouldn't have guessed by then Luna had already killed two men. Shaking his head, he pocketed the photo, trying not to crumple it further.

-In Hanji's room-

Brushing through her hair, Hanji wondered at Luna's soft beauty. How someone this heart-stoppingly beautiful hadn't been heard of before. Even girls from the Underground city had been heard of before, and a rich merchant or even a noble had taken her for a wife. She sighed, as this was the exact shade she had wanted her hair when she was younger.

"Hanji… has Levi ever mentioned me before?" she said, not looking in the mirror, scared to meet her gaze.

Hanji stopped brushing her hair. She thought… Levi never told her anything about the life before the military. He hadn't even spoken to her about Farlan and Isabel. Then… it hit her. The performance in the recovery unit, holding her close that way.

"I think he kept it quiet so Erwin wouldn't attempt to find you. The Scouting Legion has a high percentage of casualties. Recently, Levi's entire squad was wiped out. I don't think he wanted that life for you." Hanji whispered under her breath. Though this did make her feel a lot better, it still upset her that he had left her. Hanji resumed brushing her just damp hair.

"Where did you learn to fight like that?" Hanji asked, suddenly remembering how fast such a small woman took down an experienced man like Erwin. Luna smiled down at her hands again.

"After I was left alone… The man in the room came round and tried to… you know. I panicked, and I stabbed with in the neck with a letter opener. It was awful, it wasn't like you'd think it was. He stopped, and started like… fitting. The blood wasn't spurting but I'd hit his jugular. I felt awful… It wasn't needed. I ran from the inn and hid. I then followed a group of thugs around for a while, watching how they fought with those they came across. I picked it up quite easily, and because I'm small and a girl people underestimate my punches." Luna looked grim, her mouth set in a straight line. Hanji decided not to push the subject any more than needed.

Waiting outside of Hanji's room, he stood there, leaning against the wall. He couldn't believe it, even after all these years, she wanted to see him. Him, who left her in the underground to rot. The door of Hanji's room opened, and Luna stepped out. Levi stopped, actually drinking her in. Seven years do things to a girls' body that nothing else could. The simple black top, the one he'd seen on Hanji plenty of times off duty, curved to expose the smallest bit of cleavage. Her black trousers wrapped around and hugged her legs and thighs in ways that he hadn't thought possible. She was wearing the same black knee boots she had arrived in. Hanji had done something to her thick blonde hair, plaiting it down her back. Luna smiled weakly at Levi. He internally shook himself. He felt uncomfortable in his restricting, formal uniform. "Thanks Hanji, I'll hopefully see you later." She smiled at her new found friend. He held his arms behind his back, and silently led her towards the door.

The door led out into the grounds, were some new recruits could be seen brawling with each other. 'Sparing' as the higher ups liked to refer to it. It was really just a way to find out everyone's weakness and strength, and play at it. They all stopped and stared at Levi, one of the best soldiers within their ranks. Then, their eyes met the form of the new girl, who stood far too close to Levi for his usual comfort. They were seen walking towards the stables. Before rounding the corner, Levi turned and looked down at Luna. "In the Underground. Did you get a chance to see a horse?" his face was a blanket of calm, not changing. Luna shook her head. "Well you're about to meet mine."

Luna had only heard stories of them, and seen pictures in books she had had when she was small. Levi pulled her round the corner, leading her to the barn. "This is King." He announced, a small sliver of pride leaking into his tone. Standing at sixteen hands high (which is 5 foot 4 inches, just taller than Levi) King was a blackened nightmare. A stallion, the barn used him as the stud, purely because of how powerful he was. His coat was completely black, bar a small white patch on the side of its snout, and it shone in the day light. Luna was terrified of him. Levi stood behind her, making sure she couldn't run away. She moved back into Levi's chest, and felt uncomfortable. "He's… he's huge!" Luna whispered. Levi couldn't help but crack a smile. A rarity nowadays. She sounded like a little girl.

"King is a gentle giant, to some. Give him this," Levi dropped a slice of apple into her hand "and he'll be fine. He'll take the apple and let you pet him." Luna was hesitant. The biggest animal she had seen were dogs, and even they were quite small. This horse was a few inches taller than her. But she couldn't be weak. Not in front of Levi. She held out her shaking hand to the horse, the apple in her palm. As his lips tickled the palm of her hand, she giggled. After he had finished chewing, he leaned forward, holding his head towards her. She laughed. "Awww, he's so sweet." she smiled.

"Are you ready?" Levi asked quietly. He removed his cloak, and drapped it around her shoulders. he said, fastening the cloak around her shoulders. He couldn't lie, she did suit the colours. It made her look strong, powerful. Much different to the young girl he pulled out of the gutter. He helped her onto the horse, and then clambered on himself. King was a tad big for Levi, however, wouldn't settle for anything smaller. King had been his steed for three years, and had seen him through some of the worst expeditions he had ever known. "On King." And the powerful beast moved forward. "Hold on to me Luna." Levi muttered. He felt her hands grip his sides, and he dug his heels into King. They had to get to the otherside of the city before nightfall.

The journey was over faster than they begun. Before long, they were at the edge of the city. The dingier part. "Pull the hood up, hide your hair. No one else can know you're here." he said darkly. Luna quickly did so. No sooner had she done this, a buxom woman came round the corner. Luna may be from the Underground, but she knew a prostitute when she saw one. "Captain Levi Ackerman. What a surprise. Can I interest you in anything today?" She laughed, pushing her breasts up towards the young man. Luna felt her heart drop. Surely the proper young man she knew hadn't turned to prostitution. He scoffed. "Not today Rosa, just like last week. And the last seven years. I'm merely here for your charming company." Levi remarke,d not cracking a smile at his own attempt at humour. "In fact, I was wondering if you could refresh my memory as to where the Final Resting Place of the Fallen is."

"Oh Captain, you don't want to go there. O'rrible, depressing place that is."

"On the contrary, I came here with an old friend to honour some even older friends." he glanced over his shoulder at Luna. Rosa narrowed her eyes. "Say, let me have a look at you my girl." Rosa approached the horse. King shuffled back a few inches, but steadily got used to the presence of the brash woman. Rosa looked into Luna's face. Luna realised Rosa would have been beautiful... in her day. Up close, she realised the marks of age had started to appear a while ago. "I say Levi, this is the prettiest friend I've ever seen you bring round here. Prettier than that red headed one. Shame about her really." She then pointed to a small road set away from the market stalls and the shops along the town street. "Down there. Don't be too long ok? You know how the roads get." Levi nodded, and without warning, shot off. They were making good time.

All fell silent as they approached the gates. Iron wrought gates, it allowed the eye to see the miles of white headstones. Thousands upon thousands of them dotted the lush green grass. "Levi... Who did she mean when she said 'the red headed one'." Luna choked out, hoping the woman meant Isabel and not someone else.

People stared at Levi as he rose through the streets.

"Look, it's him!"

"Humanity's greatest soldier."

"Captain Levi!"

"Who's that on the horse with him? I didn't know he was married."

Luna blushed. People where staring at them.

"Levi do people always stare at you this much?" She questioned, her cheeks bright red.

"No." He said nothing more. His voice was empty, devoid of all emotion. They must be close. They took a sudden left turn off a side street. A woman in a skirt and an off the shoulder top that exposed most of her breasts stood against the wall, talking to a tall shady looking man in a hat. "'Ello Captain. Up for a bit of fun?" The lady snickered. Levi rolled his eyes.

"No thank you Betsie." He scowled slightly. Betsie continued to giggle, until she locked eyes with Luna. "Already found yourself a bit, aye? She's far too beautiful to be from this back alley establishment. Where did you get her, Wall Sina?" Betsie giggled, a serious undertone to her voice.

"Tch." Levi made a noise at the woman.

"She's prettier than the other one. The red head. Shame about her really." Luna heard her parting comment. As they rode past and into an open field, Luna asked the question, addressing the proverbial elephant.

"Who was that Levi?" It made her feel sick at the thought he'd keep such dirty company.

"She sees me whenever I come here, and whenever I come to find something I can't find in the markets in the main square. Sometimes they don't save me tea, sometimes it's other things. But I know better than to consort with prostitutes, I don't want a disease." That put Lunas mind at rest.

"Who did she mean by the red headed one?" She felt Levi tense.

"The red head Betsie was reffering to would have been Petra. Petra joined the Survey Corps at a rather young age. Her mother and father didn't want her to leave home, so they addressed me personally. They believed 'humanities greatest soldier' could have looked after their daughter. he was in my squadren. They begged me to marry her, so I could always watch over her. But... my entire squad was wiped out."

"How?"

"I'll tell you the story one day." They continued trotting, the slow, steady pace.


	4. Chapter 4

As Luna was about to fall asleep, they stopped. "We're here." Levi muttered. Luna peeked from behind him. For a long, sweeping four acres, where small white tombstones. They stood about a foot high each, each one of them had one of three different insignias on them, for each branch of the military. Doubtlessly, the most where from the Survey Corps. "It's strange really, that even though we have such a small amount of bodies coming back after an expedition, we still have far more service men and women buried here. With the other branches, the military police especially, you are guaranteed a body. They don't die at their post, they die in their beds old and grey. We... We're lucky to fight another day." Levi's face held a dark expression. Levi jumped off the horse, and helped Luna down. Lunas wound was obviously still painful, so Levi was extra careful. He tired King to a post, and led Luna through the winding path of graves. It was haunting. Though the sun was at its peak in the orange sky, there was a thin, wet blanket of fog settling over the graveyard. Levi led her through them all. He never brought others to this point, he'd only ever come here on his own. But this was the closure Luna needed.

After several minutes, they found the spot. Levi had taken a year to pay for it, but there was a small monument in the place of the two small stones. It was an engraved picture of a boy and girl holding hands, their back facing the sun. "In Loving Memory of Isabel and Farlan. Brave and loyal until the end." Luna traced a finger over the words. Her eyes filled with tears. She couldn't quite believe it; Isabel who had been so kind to her, Farlan who had embraced her like a sister. Both of them, now rotting beneath her. She dropped to her knees, remembering a few sweet memories.

 _Luna sobbed as Farlan applied the disinfectant to her leg. A man had attacked her when she had went out looking for Levi. He was late for dinner. She had been in an alleyway when the man had pulled the knife on her. She had felt the knife sink into her thigh, and she had jolted away. As Levi had taught her, she had disarmed him, broken his arm, and sank the knife into his chest. Self preservation, Levi would remind her. She limped home, leaving the man to bleed._

 _"Levi is going to kill you." Farlan said gravely. "He's told you about following him."_

 _"He was late... I was worried. I always worry."_

 _"Can you imagine how angry he would be if you had been attacked? Or killed? Imagine that Luna. Think of him, who has done so much for all of us, for you. Don't gamble so recklessly with your life he worked so hard to save." Farlan scolded her. Luna held her chin defiantly, her lip no longer quivering._

 _"He wouldn't care. He doesn't care about me." she looked away._

 _"Of course he does, idiot. He wouldn't keep you here if he didn't. PLease Luna, next time, be a bit more careful. Don't do this to him." he put his arm around her, holding her as he would a little sister._

 _It was cold. Luna and Isabel lay in bed in absolute silence. Levi and Farlan had locked them in the house while they were out negotiating. They knew what that meant._

 _"Isabel... I'm scared." Luna muttered. "What happens if they don't come back?"_

 _"I used to think like that. Then you came along. They'll come back... Levi wouldn't leave you behind. He could be beaten to a pulp and he'd drag himself back to look after you." she smiled._

 _"Isabel... You're the best." she smiled back at her friend. Luna had been with them three short months, but she and Isabel had clocked straight away. Isabel thought at first she was going to dislike her, to think she was a whiny, pathetic girl. But she proved to be tough, scared and young as she was._

 _"They'll be back before you know it Luna. Try to get some sleep."_

The tears fell down her face, one by one. She felt Levi kneel next to her on the ground, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. He leant the side of his head against her head. Putting the other arm around her , he pulled her into his chest as she wept. "Shhhhh." But the tears kept falling. Guttural sobs rolled from her chest, and her head throbbed. But none of that would stop the ache in her heart. For years, she had prayed they were alive. Prayed they had lived and they would be there to greet her as she came above ground to join them. The years alone in the underground had turned her heart to ice, stopped her feeling the remorse she had felt when she had joined the group. After she had escaped the room she'd been left alone in, the group of thugs she had stayed with were less than impressed with such a scrawny girl hanging around them. However, through months of work and ruthless killing on her part and those under her, she rose to the top in the undergrounds organised crime family. But she had worked this hard for a reason; to bring Levi, Farlan and Isabel back home. She had it figured out; she would go above ground , then, upon her returning with the relevant and needed information, they would raid where ever they would be keeping them and bring them back below ground. However, Levi wasn't being held against his will anymore. He could have left, came back to her. But he stayed. And he left her in the underground to rot. She stood up, and shook her head. "Can we leave, please? This is harder than I thought." She wiped the last tear from her cheek.

"Do you want to leave?"

"Yes." she started to walk towards the gates. She walked rather fast.

What is wrong with her? Levi questioned himself. Getting up, he followed her.

The ride home was silent. Levi couldn't understand why she was so silent. His main concern was getting her back to the barracks before night fall; this part of the district was rather rough at night. Just because they were out of the Underground didn't mean they were not still exposed to high levels of crime. The sky was darkening, and they still had a good ten minutes. "Hold on." he said quietly. He felt her squeeze his sides gingerly. He dug his heels into King's flank, and he immediately started to gallop. He was an obedient horse. Looking around, he took in as much of his surroundings as possible. Thieves were about at this time, and while he knew he would be fine, he wouldn't expose Luna to it after an operation.

After an uneventful ride back, they returned unscathed. Sasha Brouse found him straight away, and saluted. "Captain Levi sir! Commander Erwin requests your presence immediately." she said, staring straight ahead. Levi, with his cool, expressionless face, dismissed her, asking her to fetch Hanji to show Luna where she needed to stay. Sasha nodded curtly, and set off running down the hall.

"Captain?" Luna asked.

"Yes, Captain. I have my own squadron for when we go on expeditions." he informed her. Hanji shot round the corner. "

"Luna come with meeeee." she sung, taking her by the arm and pulling her along.

"Look after her shitty glasses." Levi muttered darkly.

"Yes, yes short stuff. Whatever you say." she laughed, dragging Luna along with her. The left side of Levi's mouth quirked slightly as he saw what was one of his closest friends drag away his oldest. Losing his smile, he walked towards his office, the feeling of dread that settled in the pit of his stomach was hidden in his face very well.


	5. Chapter 5

"This is your room. It used to be a Captains quarters. I figured you'd need the privacy so I had them clear this room out for you. We'll sort you some clothes out soon." Hanji said to her in a reassuring tone. The room was sparse and quite cosy, but clean and airy. It contained a chest of drawers, a mirror, a chair and a bedside table and a bed. The bed was quite large, taking the majority of the small room up. "For now, I'd like you to keep what you have on. Me and Mikasa have put a few things together for you, and we've bought you a few simple things. A tooth brush, a brush, other essentials." She handed her a small . It also held a bar of fragrant soap, and a fluffy towel. A towel. Luna raised her eyebrows. "I'm sorry... I've never had a towel before."  
"Excuse me?" Hanji asked, wondering whether it was her hearing going now. Her grandfather had always said it ran in the family. Eyes go when they're young, then the hearing later. She saw Luna flush bright pink.  
"In the underground... We had rags, not towels. Towels are a luxury."  
"Well. You have two now, and they're yours. Also, mine and Levi's offices slash bedrooms are just down the hall so if you need anything just knock." Hanji smiled at her. Luna placed the belongings on the bed, and wrapped her arms around her. Despite knowing little about her, she was kind and gentle with her. Obviously her and Levi were good friends. "Thank you so much Hanji."

"Ackerman."  
"Erwin." Levi said definitely. He should know better than to blatantly disrespect the Commander in such a way. But he didn't care. He knew what was coming. Deep in his bones.  
"This... This girl of yours. Luna. Why was she never mentioned?" Erwin stood over Levi by over a foot, but they both knew who the strongest one of the two were. They knew Levi was next to take over from Erwin if Erwin was to ever fall in battle. But Levi did not like to remind him of it.  
"She... She was fragile. Just a young girl. I had to leave her."  
"You lied to me."  
"To save her, Sir."  
"You love her, don't you Levi." Erwin stated. It was not a question. "You saved her because you love her. And you wanted to protect her." Levi's eyes widened.  
"Don't be foolish, Commander. She was a close friend, like Isabel and Farlan."  
"No... Something else. She's very beautiful, you know. She'd do well in high society, fetch a high price on the inner wa-"  
Erwin couldn't finish his sentence. He couldn't even breath, for Levi had a hand to his throat. An anger overtook him, a violent, protective anger. No one would touch Luna.  
"You will NOT talk like that about her. She is not livestock."  
Erwin smiled. He knew it. Levi released him.  
Coughing, Erwin gathered himself. "You have three choices Levi. Either we send her back down to the underground and blacklist her from getting full citizenship, we can give her to a blue blood in exchange for weapons, manoeuvre gear, food and horses, or... Or she can stay here with us in the barracks."  
"What? She can stay?" Levi was astounded.  
Erwin smirked. How else to make humanities greatest soldier even greater, than by having the woman he loved fight by his side.  
"Once she has healed and fully capable, we put her through an intensive training course, and she joins the Survey Corps in Squad Levi. The choice is yours. I expect a response in a weeks time, otherwise we'll choose for you." And with that, Erwin left Levi's office. Levi balled his hand into a fist. Bastard. Another wave of rage took over him, and he slammed his fist straight through a frame. It cut his hand, and he swore loudly. It was quite dark, so he hoped he hadn't woken anyone up. He heard a rap at the door. "What?" He barked. The door crept open, and Luna turned her head. "Levi what have you done?" She exclaimed. Closing the door behind her, she started panicking slightly. "Where is the bandage box?"  
"It's really not nece-"  
"Where is the bandage box Levi?" She demanded.  
"Under my desk." He mumbled. She picked up the bag that contained the first aid kit.  
"Sit." She said, pushing his chair across the floor at him. He sat, holding his hand in the air. It was bleeding quite badly now. Opening the bag, she found a pair of tweezers. She kneeled down slowly, so not to bust a stitch in her own wound. She found two small bowls, one she filled with the spirit and a clean cloth. The other was for the broken glass. Levi didn't wince as her hands went to work. She had all of the glass out of his hand in no time.  
"Can you feel this?" She pressed his palm. He nodded. "This?" She squeezed at each jointed section of his five digits. He nodded again. "Wiggle your fingers for me." He obliged, though it hurt. "It'll be fine. This will sting." She wrung out the cloth and applied it to the wounds on his hand. He hissed in pain. "Christ!" He groaned through gritted teeth. "Stop being a baby Levi. You've had worse." She said flatly. No sympathy in her tone at all. After she cleaned the blood, she realised although there was a huge amount of blood initially, it had stopped bleeding, apart from one large gash across his palm. Dumping the now scarlet cloth back in the bowl, she looked through the bag and found a curved medical needle and thread. Tying it up, she pulled his hand towards her. She stitched carefully and evenly, and tugged slightly to close the wound. Levi sat quietly, not wanting her harsh tone to pierce him again.  
"What did that guy want? That blond dude? I saw him come out of here a minute ago." She snipped the thread, securing it in a knot. She placed a gauze pad over the top of the wound, and started to bandage into place.

Levi went silent, completely and utterly frozen.

"He... He told me I had three choices Luna. Three choices about you."

"Me? I paid my way up here!"

"You need citizenship before you can live here like everyone else. He said I have three choices. We can either sell you to the inner wall for useful things" she started to laugh at him but something about his facial expression stopped her. "We could put you back underground and stop you from ever claiming citizenship. Or you can stay here. But... You'll have to join the Survey Corps." She stopped and thought carefully.

"I'll stay and join the Survey Corps." She muttered to him. Levi was surprised. After everything she'd heard, after what happened to Farlan and Isabel, she still wanted to stay.

"I think... I think you should go to the inner wall. You'd be married to a rich and powerful man, he'd look after you. You'd never want for anything again." He trailed off. She narrowed her eyes, and cupped his face in her hands. "No. I'm not an animal for trade. I'm a human and I can make my own decision. Damn it Levi, look at me." She demanded, becoming agitated. He looked at her, and his cool emotionless eyes stared into the galaxy of light, thought and wonder that were her own. "I'm not leaving you, not again. We're together again, thats what matters." She looked at his lips. She'd wanted to kiss him again. She said again because of the one drunk kiss they had shared during a night of merriment. _Farlan and Isabel had gone to bed, and they were lounging on the sofa, talking about things that came to mind. "You're so cute, Levi." She giggled._

 _"You're alright yourself." His eyes aglow with mischief, a smirk tugging at his lips. They both leaned in and their lips brushed, but it was enough to take her breath away. He leaned in, sealing them together with a kiss. Not knowing what else to do, she closed her eyes and kissed back. They'd laughed later and didn't bring it up again._

Looking into his eyes once more, she somehow knew by the mischeivous gleam in his eyes that he was thinking about it too. Leaning close, she could feel his breath on her lips. Just as their mouths were about to graze, Levi stopped her. He stepped back. "No Luna... We can't. I'm your Captain now. And I can't... I can't do this. Please... go to your room. I'll talk to you tomorrow. I'll have Hanji wake you up."  
"Levi..."  
"Get out. Now." he said, quietly. In the voice that she remembered could always shake her to the core. She felt tears fill her eyes.  
"Fine." she choked out. She ran out, slamming the door behind her. Levi closed his eyes, and exhaled. Erwin already knew far too much. If something were to happen between them... he wouldn't have him use her as a bargaining chip against him. And what would happen if they stayed together and he lost her again? But this time it being to a titan, not just time? He couldn't deal with losing the one person he had left in this shitty world. He knew hurting her now would be for the best. Hopefully it would make her change her mind and go to the inner wall. Levi gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. He couldn't stand the idea of Luna being anywhere near anyone else. But he couldn't stand the idea of taking her on their expeditions, with every potential of losing her. This predicament invoked feelings he hadn't felt in a long, long time. Tears of frustration stung the back of his eyes, something that hadn't happened since he was a young lad. He crumpled to the floor. He was getting too old for this shit.

Luna ran straight past Hanji on the way out of the door. "Luna!" she shouted, but she kept running. She ran out the door and into the darkness. "What in the world-" she muttered under voice. Of course, she'd come from Levi's office. She marched into his office to find one of her closest friends with his back against the wall, his knees to his face, his face in his hands. She shut the door behind her. "Levi... what did you say to her to make her cry?" She said in her sternest voice. Levi looked up at her. "Oh Jesus Shitty Glasses... sit down, I need to explain."

Luna breathed in the night air. For the first time all day, the last twenty minutes had been the relaxation she needed. She marveled at the waxy moon, surprised at how beautiful it actually was. She had only ever seen the moon when it

She could smell the horses, hear the wind... and footsteps. Suddenly, her instincts kicked in. Her ears pricked back, she could hear there were two, what direction they were coming from, and that they meant her harm. She gauged this from the speed and intent in their pace. Whipping around at the last minute, she threw a punch at one assailant. The other threw a punch at her, which she grabbed with her right, and then brought the palm of her hand into her nose. With a sickening punch, she felt a crunch as the nose was pushed unnaturally back. "Fuck!" she heard the girl exclaim. She took a second and stood back, taking in the two that had attacked her. One was barely a man, with blue eyes and brown, ruffled hair. He was quite handsome in a childish way. The other was a woman, probably the same age as the boy. She had black her and dark eyes, though they were screwed up in pain. "You fucking bitch." she took her hands away from her face, and her eyes were ablaze.  
"Who are you? Why are you trying to attack me?" she demanded.  
"Attack you? We wanted to give you initiation." the boy said, holding his hands out.  
"Initiation?"  
"Yes! Into the scouts! We all saw you earlier while we were sparring."  
"You broke my nose. You'll pay for this!" the woman advanced on her. Luna lowered herself ever so slightly. This girl was strong, but her fight was fueled by raw anger. She had no self control. She wouldn't take long. "ACKERMAN. JAGER." She heard a familiar bark coming from behind them. "Ackerman. You're a smart girl. Fighting with this one would be a mistake." Luna felt Levi appear at her shoulder. "Ahhh but I see. She already hit you."  
"I did not hit... Ackerman." Luna said, stuttering at the name. Why did this girl have the same last name as Levi. She opened her mouth to defend herself, but the girl stopped, and instead said:  
"She... yes sir. I threw a punch."  
"Well.. you know not to do that again, don't you? Go back to your bunks."  
"SIR." They exclaimed in unison, placing their left arm behind their back, their right fist over their hearts. They then swiftly left. The girl threw her the dirtiest look over her shoulder. Luna knew this wasn't over. Levi rounded on Luna.  
"What the Hell is wrong with you? Why did you run out here like that? Anyone could have grabbed you. Ackerman didn't know you had just been stitched up, why would you initiate a fight? You could have been hurt badly by her, shes one of our best soldiers." Luna scoffed at him. Secretly, she hated him talking up someone else the way he used to talk about her. "Luna, come back inside please. We can talk in your room." he muttered. Looking around, he put his hand between her shoulder blades and lead her back inside.

"Listen, I'm sorry I made you cry. But this" he motioned between the two of them "can't happen. Not now." Levi shook his head. Luna sat on the bed. She rubbed the stub of a wooden post at the bottom of the bed, anything to distract her from looking into his dark eyes. "Yeah." she said flatly.  
"Look at me when I'm talking to you damn it!" he shouted, slamming his hand onto the chair.  
She looked into his face defiantley. She didn't leave the Underground for this. She wanted to bring him home. She wanted to bring them all home.  
"Levi... you were so against the military, especially the scouting legion, now all of a sudden you're this fucking guy-"  
"His name is Commander Erwin." he said flatly.  
"Erwin. You're Erwin's lapdog." she finished. His eyes narrowed, and he leaned in closer so their faces were mere inches apart. This didn't phase her. "You abandoned me Levi. Even after Farlan and Isabel died, you didn't come and find me. You left me to rot in that shit hole while you were living the life of luxury up here, getting _engaged_ , getting your own _office!_ You may be some big guy in the military up here, but you do not have the right to tell me what to do anymore, _Captain._ " she spat the last word out, instead of as a mark of respect, it was a mark of defiance. She meant it as an insult. She could see the angry fire burning in his eyes.  
"You know _why_ we came to the surface? Do you?"  
"No. Enlighten me."  
"We were approached by a high powered man, who informed us Erwin had been trying to capture us and bring us in for all the Hell we'd been raising. This man done his research on us, and he knew there were four of us, he knew how sick you were. Me and Farlan argued for hours, they wanted to send you to a hospital on the surface in return for this job. And reward all four of us with citizenship. However i refused to let you go alone, and they needed us three to carry out the job without detection. So they took Jan. Remember Jan? Of course you do. All this man wanted me to do, was to kill Erwin." Levi spoke calmly without any remorse in his voice, as if he wre having a normal conversation. "They found us. They took us while you were in that room with that pig of a man. Erwin knew deep down there was another, but he had limited time to apprehend us. So he took us three and put us through an intensive training course, like the one you're going to go through if you decide to stay here."  
"Why didn't you come and get me? Why didn't you kill him? Why did you leave me Levi?" she demanded. She was standing now, her fists balled and her legs stiff, her body shaking with anger. His gaze dropped, his eyes darkening.  
"We were sent on our first expedition. I decided I'd kill Erwin myself. Farlan was so against killing someone for something we could possibly earn ourselves... and Isabel. You know what Isabel was like. Anyway, I rode ahead in heavy rain to find Erwin. I came across an entire squadron, completley whiped out. The path of destruction was headed back the way I'd came, so I followed it. And there was an abnormal titan. All I could find was Isabels head... and half of Farlan. After I killed it, I was going to kill Erwin. Not because of the job, but because I had so much rage inside me. He knew the plan all along, and he gave me a choice. Stay and fight with him in the scouting legion, or go to prison. So I chose to fight. But in that moment, I knew. I had every intention of getting you out of there, bringing you to the surface, and giving you the life you deserved. But it meant that you could be the one I found dead next. The one I had to bury. I can't put you in the ground Luna. I can't say goodbye to the last person I hold so close to me. So I decided to leave you. But there was never a day that went by that I hadn't considered returning to the Stohess district and looking for you. I wanted to explain to you what had happened, why it happened, and why we left. For leaving you alone, I'll forever hate myself. But you're here now. And I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe." He stood, his short height still stood over her. She stared him in the face, this time it crumpled again. She wrapped her arms around his waist, leaning her head on his chest. Levi stiffened, after years of such little contact with humans, he felt the familiar warmth that had been absent for years. He slowly put his hands on her waist, leaning his cheek against her hair. Even ater all this time, she stilled smelled the way that was burnt into his mind.  
"Luna. Get yourself better. Then i'll start training you myself. You'll be in my squadron. I won't let anything happen to you. I've got to go to bed ok? I'll wake you up for breakfast ok?" he kissed her on top of the head. It took everything inside him to not carry on holding her. He couldn't lead her on. "We'll get you uniform sorted out tomorrow." He let her go, and she pulled away. "Go to sleep, ok?"  
"Yes Levi." she sighed, sitting on the edge of the bed. This wasn't the emotional reunion she'd imagined. She took the trousers and boots Hanji had given her to wear off and draped them over the chair Levi was just sitting in. She then carefully climbed into bed. She was amazed at what little pain she was in from her surgery. Laying back, she blew out the candle on the bedside table. Sleep took over her aching body in moments, and she clung to the feeling of Levi's lips on top of her head.

Levi lay there, staring at the ceiling. Ah the life of an insomniac. He wanted to be in bed with her again, and knowing she was a stones throw away from his Captains quarters made him very uncomfortable. Sighing, he rolled onto his side. He knew roll call tomorrow would be Hell. But he'd need to prep the scouts for a new addition, and remind them how real soliders greeted their new comrades. He shut his eyes, knowing sleep wouldn't take him for another two hours, at least.


End file.
